Researchers from the universities of Cadiz, Seville and Cordoba are working on a study to shorten the traditional biological ageing process of sherry wines, brandies and wine vinegars in oak butts and casks (the soleras and criaderas system) in Andalusia without losing quality in the final product.

The project is funded by the Andalusian Ministry of Innovation, Science and Enterprise (148,200 Euros), and is aimed at obtaining detailed information about the key parameters in the ageing process of different types of wines, brandies and vinegars. Also, experts will establish quality profiles in relation to ageing periods, and will carry out optimisation tests or tests ageing reducing tests, by applying specific techniques combined with traditional techniques.

Those products resulted from the optimisation techniques will then be compared with the ones obtained using the traditional method, with the aim of producing wines of similar quality with shorter ageing periods.

The study is expected to yield a better knowledge about extraction mechanisms and the evolution of the composition in the course of the ageing process using the traditional biological ageing process of solera and criadera, which is of great interest for wine producers. This will allow them, on the one hand, to design the desired product and, on the other hand, optimise the production system, making appropriate decisions about the different variables involved.

The study will be carried out at the Andalusian Centre for Wine Producing Research (CAIV), located at the universities of Cadiz, Seville and Cordoba, and several Andalusian wine-producing companies will also participate in the study.

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